Restaurants of western PA

Our time in western PA has largely been used to help my mother clean up the basement of the house and garage. This has been time consuming. We even started trimming trees in the front yard that need such attention. This left little time for other activities but we did visit a few restaurants in the Mercer and New Castle areas, and I’m glad we did.

Over the years we had lamented the fact that there were few really good restaurants in the area. We compare the restaurants that we visit in our travels to the restaurants we frequent in our home area of South Florida. South Florida has many fine restaurants with Chefs that do an amazing job with preparing fine food for your enjoyment.

One local PA restaurant that we want to mention is the Springfield Grille, 1226 Perry Hwy, Mercer, PA, 724-748-3589 (this is Rt. 19 south of Mercer and south of I-80). We enjoyed ourselves so much we went to the Springfield Grille 3 times in two weeks!

Our first surprise was the ability to get a Mojito for a drink. Mojitos are not unusual in South Florida but was a real surprise for us when in western PA. Our bartender, Alexia Zdral, who has honed her skills in the Washington D.C. area, made us a mojito as fine as any we had ever had anywhere. But it did not end there. Alexia had something special for us to try.

Ever had a Besito? Who would ever guess you could make a mixed drink with basil and vanilla vodka and have it taste so good. How about a Pinecone? A cocktail made with sage and gin! Alexia fine tuned the Besito but collaborated with Chef Nate Barker on the Pinecone. It is their original recipe and only available at the Springfield Grille. So there you have it, health drinks!

Speaking of Chef Nate Barker, you have to try any of his entrée’s that feature lamb. We zeroed in on the lamb and had two versions of lamb on different nights. The food was fantastic and I’ll say again, a surprise for western PA. We also enjoyed a spinach artichoke dip that makes for a fantastic appetizer. You can also have crab added to the dip to take it to another level. Lastly, don’t forget the turtle soup. The farm raised turtles used in the soup are delicious. The soup is served with a shot of sherry that you pour into the soup and adds just the right additional spice to the mix! We will be back to try more of Chef Nate’s preparations in the near future.

We also want to thank Teresa Decker, General Manager of the Springfield Grille, who came by and talked to us and made us feel welcome in her establishment.

The Springfield Grille is the type of place you just want to go back to every chance you get. Good food, fine drinks, and new friends- it just doesn’t get better than that.